The current Yemeni Civil War traces its origins to the political transition that followed the 2011 uprising against long-serving President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who transferred power to his deputy Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi under a Gulf Cooperation Council–brokered initiative. The transition faltered, and in September 2014 Houthi forces (Ansar Allah), a Zaydi Shia movement based in northern Yemen, seized the capital Sana'a. By early 2015 they had forced Hadi to flee, eventually to Riyadh.
In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Sudan, and others launched Operation Decisive Storm, an air campaign aimed at restoring the Hadi government. The coalition received logistical and intelligence support from the United States, United Kingdom, and France. Iran has been widely accused, including in UN Panel of Experts reports, of supplying weapons and technical assistance to the Houthis, though Tehran denies direct military involvement.
The war has produced what UN agencies have repeatedly described as one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, with widespread famine conditions, a major cholera outbreak beginning in 2016, and tens of thousands of direct conflict deaths. UN Security Council Resolution 2216 (2015) imposed an arms embargo on Houthi leadership and demanded their withdrawal from seized territories.
Key subsequent developments include:
- The Stockholm Agreement (December 2018), focused on the port of Hodeidah and prisoner exchanges.
- The southern Southern Transitional Council (STC), backed by the UAE, declaring self-administration in 2020 and complicating the anti-Houthi coalition.
- A UN-brokered truce in April 2022 that largely held in formal terms even after its official expiry.
- The replacement of Hadi by an eight-member Presidential Leadership Council in April 2022.
- Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping beginning in late 2023, linked by the group to the Gaza war, prompting US- and UK-led strikes.
The conflict overlaps with AQAP (al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula) and Islamic State activity in parts of the country.
Example
In March 2015, Saudi Arabia announced Operation Decisive Storm, leading a coalition of Arab states in airstrikes against Houthi positions after the group advanced on Aden and forced President Hadi to flee.
Frequently asked questions
Most analysts date it to September 2014, when Houthi forces seized Sana'a, with international escalation in March 2015 when the Saudi-led coalition began airstrikes.
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